The Philadelphia 76ers took a long convoluted route to finding the man they wanted to replace former head coach Doug Collins. The man they selected might not take the job however as ESPN’s Marc Stein reports that San Antonio Spurs assistant Brett Brown is being urged to pass on the Sixers’ offer.

Turning down a head coaching job would be a big decision for an assistant that wasn’t even the top guy on his own staff — that honor goes to new Atlanta Hawks head coach Mike Budenholzer — but it could pay off for him in the long run.

The Sixers aren’t expected to be competitive in their first season under new general manager Sam Hinkie and are widely considered the favorites for a top pick in next year’s loaded NBA Draft. If Brown endures a sixty-loss season the first-year head coach would be starting his stateside career in quite the hole and without much to add to his resume if he’s canned for a higher-profile coach next season. That could Brown in the company of a guy like Mike Dunlap who coached an already bad Charlotte Bobcats team to a 21-61 record last season before being replaced after just one year on the job. Kevin O’Neill Sam Vincent Quinn Buckner Jeff Bower Johnny McCarthy John Wetzel Leonard Hamilton and fellow candidate Michael Curry were also canned after their first season as an NBA head coach — and none of them have been able to get another head job since.